Following the nationwide lockdown, one thing is clear: the progress that children have made in terms of their learning varies hugely, further entrenching the educational inequity that exists and which fuels the lifelong social and economic divide. Drawing on research indicating that parental involvement in their child's learning makes a difference of two to three years to that child's progress, Fiona Carnie asks whether schools in the United Kingdom, and particularly in England, could do more to build a genuine partnership with parents. Citing examples from elsewhere, she argues that it is time to take parent participation in education seriously if we are to have any chance of levelling the playing field.